Largest Competition of American Wines in the
World Reaches New Heights in 2008

(San Francisco, CA, January 2008) – Even with the
holidays behind us, the celebration is just
beginning for the San Francisco Chronicle Wine
Competition. Held over a period of four days at the
Cloverdale Citrus Fairgrounds in January, this
exclusive event has once again broken world records
with 4,235 wines entered into the 2008 competition,
all of which were evaluated by an elite panel of
more than 60 professional wine judges from across
the country.

Founded in 1983 as the modestly sized Cloverdale
Citrus Fair Wine Competition, it has evolved into
the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition while
gaining notoriety and national acclaim for its
ability to entice thousands of entries from the
major wine-producing regions in the United States.

Wine lovers ranging from professional to amateur
tasters will have the opportunity to sample these
award-winning selections at the San Francisco
Chronicle Wine Competition Public Tasting, February
16, 2008 at Fort Mason’s Festival Pavilion. Toting
the fact that it is a complete wine and food
experience, the Public Tasting annually pairs
varietals from the Competition with sumptuous
creations from some of the world’s top artisan food
purveyors, creating the ultimate assortment of
flavors and textures.

This year the San
Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition Public Tasting
is proud to partner with California gourmet
specialty foods website
SavorCalifornia.comto offer treats from
dozens of the finest food and beverage producers in
the state including Costeaux French Bakery and Café,
Fiscalini Cheese, Little Laura’s Sweets, and Savvy
Wine Food. In addition, staff and students from the
California Culinary Academy will be on hand to
prepare mouthwatering morsels utilizing the finest
quality ingredients, crafted to perfection to
accompany the best wines in the country. Taste and
texture, now for the first time the SFCWC will
partner with the San Francisco Orchid Society to
bring exotic beauty and mystique to the ambiance of
the Competition. Four of the winning wines will be
poured at the Pacific Orchid Exposition,
www.orchidsanfrancisco.org, one of the top three
orchid shows in the country and will be engulfed in
over 150,000 orchid flowers.

The annual beneficiary of the San Francisco
Chronicle Wine Competition is the Santa Rosa Junior
College Wine Studies Program and Culinary Arts
Program, saluted for educational excellence in the
fields of wine studies and culinary arts. The 2008
San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition is grateful
to San Francisco Magazine, KGO-AM 810 NewsTalk,
NBC11, Schott Zwiesel, and Chrysler for their
sponsorship and support, as well as to In Wine
Country, American AgCredit, Marriott Fisherman’s
Wharf, Artisan Bakers, and the California Culinary
Academy for their ongoing involvement.